MySQL throws an error if you connect without using SSL, so therefore the MySQL team is making it clear it's best to use SSL. Clearly a database connection has critical data that you don't want to leak to 3rd parties, and encrypting the database connection is preferred. What's even more preferred is tight control to limit visibility of the database connection. The official MySQL Docker container automatically generates a set of SSL certificates to use for connections, so let's see how to put those certificates to use.

Let's start this journey into Docker by learning how to install it on popular systems. Installation is a lot simpler today than at the beginning, especially on Mac and Windows. You youngsters don't know how easy you have it now that Docker for Mac and Docker for Windows exist. In the old days we had to walk 10 miles through the snow, uphill both ways, to install VirtualBox along with a specialized virtual machine to use Docker.

Modern development environments require a continuous integration system, along with a reasonable git-based repository hosting service. It's possible to rent these services, Github and Gitlab are both excellent hosted git repository services for example, and there are several hosted continuous integration systems. Gitlab in particular is a one-stop-shop offering both Git hosting and continuous integration in one service. But, you can easily host Git and Continuous Integration services on your own hardware. And with a little work the services can be HTTPS-protected using Lets Encrypt.

Sometimes you want a Docker container to execute background tasks, and therefore want cron to be installed and running. Having cron running in the background is part of normal Unix/Linux/etc system admin practices. Even though the crontab format is kind of hokey, we all learn it and set up automated background tasks to keep the world functioning. Let's see how to set this up in a Docker container.

Setting up MySQL on Docker is fairly simple, and the MySQL team has done a credible job creating a flexible Docker image that can be used in many circumstances. Once the MySQL container is set up, you need a method to verify it can be accessed from other containers, and to manage the database it contains. Enter the mysql-client and phpMyAdmin Docker images. Both are easy to set up, and easy to use. Typically when deployed as part of an application stack, the MySQL container won't be visible to the public Internet but does need to be visible to other containers in your deployed application. Hence, there must be a private bridge network the containers use to communicate with each other, and the only ports published are what's required to supply the service to the public.